Dreamations
by Lady AA-Chan
Summary: AU-Though living in darkness because of his disability, young Kai dreams of seeing a boy. But little did Kai know that this boy will literally change his darkened world and will need him when they are older. Will Kai save his dream-friend or save himself?
1. Prologue: Impossible

Authoress: Well, consider this a side (yet entertaining) project from _Paranormal_. I also might be stepping outside of Beyblade, so look for me elsewhere in the anime or cartoon genre! Without further ado… aw crap, I forgot the following:

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade and its characters; Any other characters are my own, otherwise coincidental.

Keys: Narration, "Speech," 'Thoughts,' _Past mentioning_ (unless implied before hand), ... (next scene), /.../ (dream scene)

Warnings (for future chapters as well): Language, violence, sexual situations (I will _try _keep it at T+)

Authoress: Okay! Without further ado, here's my second fic, _Dreamations_.

* * *

**Prologue: Impossible**

_**Ten years ago…**_

The young boy of eight huffed at his homework, not understanding this English assignment. He re-read the passage and the question, but wondered if there was a double meaning to the question being asked. He drummed his fingers on the glass dining room table, while trying to think of a way to say his answer…

"Awesome!" yelled the babysitter of sixteen, quickly jumping and returning to his seat on the couch. He leaned forward on his knees, keeping his brown eyes on the huge flat screen. He didn't mind babysitting for the Pajari's, especially if both of them have late night business to attend. He could throw a party and still get away with anything if he wanted, but the rugby game was on. He mentally patted himself on the back for having such an easy job with great pay… He grinned at the television, waving his fist at his team for encouragement-

"Excuse me." Startled, the babysitter turned his attention to his charge who was scowling towards him without the heated glare.

"Sorry, Kai. My team scored and-"

"I can hear the excitement," remarked Kai, crossing his arms, "I know my parents are out for the night, Nikolai, but I still have homework to do," he sighed and placed a hand to his temple, massaging out an oncoming headache. "You know what? Never mind. I'll finish upstairs and put myself to bed. Just keep it down and I'll tell my parents you're my favorite so you can come back and watch the boxing match Saturday with your friends."

Nikolai was floored by the bargain. "How did you know about the mat-"

"I can still hear. I am not completely disabled."

Stealing a quick glance to the game, which transitioned into a commercial, Nikolai began to stand up. Facing his charge while smiling, he spoke: "Well, thanks Kai… Do you want me to help you upstairs?"

"No need. Dranzer will take me to my room," Kai let out a sharp whistle and held his hand opened by his right thigh. When he felt the soft fur, he grabbed enough of the fur that would not cause the animal harm. Still facing Nikolai, the boy continued, "if you can, please bring a bowl of water to my room and place it in the exact spot as the one that's up there now."

Nikolai glanced down at the red-furred husky, dismissing the idea of it scowling like its master. The teen always thought there was something odd and dangerous about that dog, so he avoided conflicts with its master and hoped that the husky would not chew on his leg. Nikolai gulped unconsciously and looked at his charge once more. "Replace the water and that's all you want? Did you want me to bring a glass for you?"

"No thank you. Good night Nikolai, and remember to keep the volume down." As Kai walked away to grab his homework in the dining room, the older boy could not believe that heavy atmosphere around the kid. Sure, he's only eight-years-old and his parents were filthy rich like nobles, but to Nikolai, Kai was the one in charge of the whole estate and that included his parents. He muted the television and watched Kai go up the stairs like a normal boy who could see…

Before starting his job babysitting, Mr. and Mrs. Pajari had a long discussion with Nikolai about Kai and his importance to them. They told him that Kai was a gift from an angel, no matter his blindness, and that they will do _anything_ to see that he was treated like a normal boy. Even though Kai's parents seem to be no where in sight, they actually adore their "gift" and cherish him above all others, according to Nikolai's point of view.

"Are you being a smart ass by muting your game or are you just making sure I don't trip and fall down the stairs?" Kai paused on the last top stair, waiting for Nikolai's answer.

Nikolai frowned at the boy. "Sorry for caring…"

"My apologies for making you seem like you _have _to."

The teen huffed angrily and pressed the arrow-down button controlling volume, cancelling the mute. Nikolai pressed the down button twice and forced himself back onto the couch, hoping that Kai heard him returning to his seat and not caring. "Brat," he mumbled-

"If you want to insult me, at least say it louder so you won't hide behind your words."

Nikolai clutched his hands into his fists and focused back onto the game. Rich kid Kai may be, but in some ways Kai was a cocky bastard who happened to be way younger than him. In the background, the teen heard the door shut, signaling that Kai was in his room. "Brat," he said in his normal voice.

…

Kai rested on his back, listening to the sounds outside his bedroom door. He could still hear the television, but enough for him to sleep though the night. The heater hummed through the vents, spreading the warm air throughout the house. He listened to the gentle cold breeze swishing at his bedroom window, a car driving through the neighborhood, a couple of dogs growling and barking further down the streets. Sometimes being blind had its advantages, but Kai still ignored his disability. What he found annoying was that everyone else was treating him like a special case; he has the ability to think and speak his own mind (hell, he was smarter than any normal eight-year-old _or_ eighteen-year-old), yet everyone radiates sympathy towards him.

The boy huffed and focused on Dranzer's breathing, which was coming from the right end-corner of Kai's bed. Kai let a small smile spread across his face for his faithful furred companion. Even when the Russian boy was a baby, Dranzer was still there in puppy form. His adopted parents were very much against having a dog off the streets attend to their young son, but from what Kai was told, the husky was determined to be Kai's seeing eye dog. Kai always thought and heard that Dranzer was the dog made for him and vice versa. He was content that his only true friend was furry and walked on four legs.

"Dranzer," Kai paused and heard that his friend stopped breathing, signaling his attention. It may sound silly to talk his dog, but Kai knew that Dranzer was not a normal dog. Still holding a smile, Kai said: "Thank you."

The husky huffed through his nose and continued to breathe normally. Kai turned onto his side and positioned himself for sleep and dreams. Though he could not see anything while he dreamed, he could hear memories or hear the rare-occasioned imagination of being a historical figure. There was one visual dream that once happened, but his mind buried any memory of it while Kai was awake: there was a woman with hair in three different shades, a pale complexion in her face and a gentle look in her eyes. For one quick moment, while Kai was dreaming of this, he always thought that woman to be his real mother. However, after that moment passed, his memory erased the thought.

Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, Kai prepared himself for audible dreams and secretly hoped that nothing loud would disturb his dreaming.

/.../.../.../

Black.

At this point, Kai did not know if he was awake or asleep because he would not hear anything. Darkness surrounded him and the silence deafened him. His own thoughts were muted, but he felt something…

Warmth. He felt something warm coming towards him. Then the darkness into a darkened gray-

Someone was walking. Judging by the light footsteps, this person was small in height or very graceful. This person may be male because female walkers were associated with the clicking of high heels; this person was either barefoot or walking with thin slippers or socks-

"Aw, great," mumbled a boy's voice; Kai frowned inwardly at the phrase and at the same time realized it was not his own voice. His was a little deeper than that, but at least he could safely conclude that a boy around Kai's age was here, wherever _here_ was. Kai heard shuffling like the boy turning around, brushing his arms against his clothing.

"Where the heck am I?" complained the voice. Kai frowned and again realized another thing: he has _never_ come across this voice before. The Russian's imagination was not strong enough to make up a boy's voice, so who was this boy?

"Who are you?" asked Kai.

"AH!" The boy yelped and turned around again. Kai heard the other boy's startled breathing; Kai took a couple of steps back when he felt the other's presence within his personal space. Not wanting to the other boy to crash into him, Kai held his arms out, scaring the boy when Kai touched his shirt. "Don't you know it's rude to scare people like that," remarked the boy, huffing and then controlling his breathing.

Kai folded his arms and attempted to take an intimidating stance. "How do you think I'm suppose to see you when I'm blind?"

"Well, I'm blind too because of all of this blackness, so don't blame your dream surroundings."

The Russian boy dropped his stance and let his arms drop to his sides. "So this is a dream?"

"Well, yeah; it's actually _your_ dream. I'm just a visitor who happened to say a few wrong words for a spell and I landed here. Funny," Kai felt the other boy's back facing him, "I thought I could only travel in my world's dreams, but this is so weird!" Kai resisted the urge to take a step back when he felt the other boy's breath once again. "Is your world always this dark?"

Kai did not know how to respond. Surely if this was his dream, then Kai could control _anything_ or _anyone_ and create any situation he wanted. But somehow, he doubted that his mind could create _this_ based off what he heard when he was awake his eight years of living.

"Define my world."

The other boy sighed and took a step back, giving Kai some space. "I mean, what's in your world? Dragons? Fae? Dreamation Seers? That's all in my world by the way, but I have a feeling that you don't have any idea what I'm talking about."

Kai sighed and felt his hand massaging the bridge of his nose. "Okay, this is stupid. I'm blind, _literally_, as in I _cannot_ _see_. I _never_ heard your voice when I'm awake, so I don't know how the hell I dreamed of you."

"You didn't _dream_ me; I just told you I'm a visitor-" the other boy paused in his speech. Kai leaned his head back when he felt a hand breezing by his eyesight. "You really can't see me?"

The Russian caught the other boy's hand, but didn't squeeze it in a harmful way. The hand felt softer than Kai's own hand, but definitely felt boyish. "Yes, but that doesn't mean I can't hear _or_ feel you, so stop waving your hand like that." Kai dropped the hand and felt cool internally; he was not even aware that he felt warm to begin with.

"Sorry," mumbled the boy. A moment's pause and the boy spoke again: "But I don't think you have to be blind in your own dreams; that's just sad."

"Well, that's reality in my world. If you can't see in real life, then you can't see dreams either-"

"What if I told you I can fix that?" An awkward silence filled between them, but the other boy continued: "That you can see while you're dreaming? I can help you see."

"That's not possible," said Kai, anger reflecting in his tone. "This dream is getting ridiculous-"

"But isn't that the point of dreams?" Kai, again, resisted on being startled when the boy grabbed his hand and held it. "Dreams are suppose to open the door to the impossible. If I can make you see while you're dreaming-and I can-then what's the worst that could happen in _your_ dream? You wake up and realize that you have no memory of it?"

Kai was floored; this boy made perfect sense. Worst-case scenario, the boy _was_ a figment of Kai's imagination and when Kai woke up, none of this would be real. Nevertheless, the Russian boy frowned at the impossible offer. "I don't even know who you are."

"I'll show who I am when you can see. Just trust me and relax."

"Relax when I'm already asleep?"

"Ha ha. Funny," Kai felt the boy's hand leave his own. He felt two palms gently cover his eyelids, and felt the boy straightened his shoulders. Kai knew that their chests were a breath's distance from each other, but oddly enough the Russian boy trusted the other with his life. After all, what could go wrong in a dream?

"As you lay within your dream/Your Sight unto you I redeem/By mine and the Sleeper's Will/This humble Gift shall be fulfilled." Kai released the breath he held slowly. He did not feel any different, but he waited until the other boy removed his hands from Kai's face. He felt the boy's body separating from Kai's space, but only a couple of feet's distance.

"Go ahead," the boy softly replied, "try opening your eyes."

Behind his eyelids, Kai noticed a change in shades. He was fine with darkness because he grew up in it, but now he no longer saw black; the black turned into a darkened gray. Kai winced at a sharp pain in his eyelids from being inactive for eight years-

Wait… Pain... Dreams cannot express pain.

"Wait," replied Kai. "If I'm still dreaming, then why do my eyes hurt?"

"Oh boy, that's a long explanation that I really can't explain," mumbled the boy. Kai heard the boy sighed then continued: "you can still feel in your dreams, but it won't have any affect on your waking body. I mean, your body may be asleep, but you can still feel while you're sleeping-never mind. Forget it. Just try to open your eyes."

Kai sighed in annoyance and pushed pass the pain. He hissed when he barely saw a bright flash of light, forcing him to shut his eyes once more. "It's too bright, I can't-"

"Wow! When you tried to open your eyes, the surroundings turned white! Actually, it's really _white_. I guess your mind became a clean slate of any visual memory or dream… Wow! So that's what you look like! I'm a little bit taller than you, sweet! …You said it was too bright?"

The Russian boy gave an annoyed expression and heard the other boy mumbled an apology. "Sorry. Okay, I'll just-Wait! I got it! Tinted spectacles!"

"What?"

"Hold on." Kai listened as the boy murmured a few words. Kai was slightly startled at something cool touching his ears and nose. He raised his fingers to touch and they felt abnormally familiar-

"Try opening your eyes again."

"Are these goggles?"

Rei sighed. "Just open them please."

Slowly, Kai's eyelids revealed his pair of eyes behind protected glasses of shade. His surprised expression mimicked in his eyes at what he saw beyond the spectacles: he saw his own hands. Pale and held past minor scars, but at least he could see! Kai smiled at seeing his own hands for the first time, watching them flex and turn into fists, then hands again.

"I can't see if _you_ can see, but guessing from you looking at your hands, I did it right!" exclaimed the other boy.

Kai's smile dimmed as he gazed up at the boy who made this impossible dream… possible. The boy, who was probably the same age as him, stood half an inch taller than Kai, wearing a grin across his face. The boy was of somewhat Asian descent, judging by his eyes and clothing, but tanner than Kai's skin. The boy's eyes was what caught Kai's breath: though shimmering with pride, the orbs were of lighter color and the windows to a soul, something Kai could _never_ imagine in millions of decades. Because the spectacles were tinted, Kai could only guess that the boy's eye color was not extremely dark.

Not wanting to be caught staring at a long time, Kai distracted his thoughts with what the boy said. "What do you mean 'you did it right?' You haven't done this before?"

Watching the boy's expression turn from pride to embarrassment amused Kai. The Russian boy smirked at the other's avoidance of looking back at him. "Well," started the other boy, "in my homeland, I seem to make mistakes, but not serious ones! But when I tried casting a Dreamation today, I did it with ease and that's pretty good for someone my age."

"What's a dreamation? And how old are you?"

"Eight…" The boy looked up and stared into Kai's eyes, searching for his eyes. The Russian boy held his breath as he felt the other boy gaze into his soul. Although he did not feel violated, Kai broke the boy's staring by waving a hand.

"Don't forget that you still haven't told me who you are… or what you are…"

Snapping the boy out of that trance, the other smiled, flashing sharper canines than Kai's. "I'm Rei, a Seer-in-training. And you are?"

"Kai… thanks… I guess…"

"Do you want to see what you look like?"

Kai frowned. "I know what I look like: two different shades of blue hair, tall for my age, smooth skin-"

"No, no, no. I mean, actually _see_ what you look like. Here!" Rei waved his arm in a graceful manner, as a space swirled into an oval water-like surface. The surface rippled and became stilled, like a mirror ready for reflection. Kai hesitated on this phenomenon, but took his time to walking towards the reflection. He looked at the mirror, raising his eyebrows at the surprise of his own appearance. Lanky, but he had expected that from when he washed his body in the shower; plus, his muscles and weight were average anyway. He did notice two different shades of blue in his hair, as he reached out to touch his front blue locks. Even if his tinted glasses couldn't really define his hair as blue, Kai assumed that what everyone with sight told him was true. Kai watched his hand feel his brow, cheek, and jaw, all part of his face. He noticed he was wearing cargo pants, with an undershirt and an unbuttoned collared shirt covering his undershirt.

Kai glanced to the side of the reflection, noticing Rei watching and grinning at him. Kai frowned and turned back to the mirror. He reached out to touch his reflection, jerking his hand back when the reflection rippled. Rei giggled and bit his bottom lip when Kai attempted to glare at him.

Smiling, Rei asked: "so what do you think of yourself?"

Kai smirked and folded his arms across his chest, seemingly admiring his looks. "I knew I was handsome, but I didn't know I was _that_ attractive."

Rei rolled his eyes and went to stood by the Russian. Kai looked at Rei through the mirror, noticing that his clothes were different: A tunic decorated his upper body while his pants were pajama-like, but both pieces were of the same color…

"That color," murmured Kai, looking at Rei's middle in the mirror.

Rei looked at Kai's reflection, tilting his head in curiosity. "What about it? Oh! You probably don't know what colors are-"

"Try ignorant of them," said Kai, glowering at his reflection's eyes that were hiding under the spectacles. Turning to the actual Rei, the Russian asked: "could you let me see all of the colors that you know?"

The other boy nibbled on his bottom lip, but gave a small smile. "There's so many colors to introduce to you that it could take more than one cycle."

"'One cycle?' What do you mean?"

"Every time you go to sleep at night, to me, it's a cycle," Rei lowered his head, looking at his bare feet, "plus even if I could get you _all_ sorts of colors, since this is _your_ dream, I can't really alter your surroundings."

Kai nodded and looked down at his feet too, noticing his bare feet as well. He smiled a little at watching his toes move and suddenly came to realize how great this gift was: to actually see was an impossible miracle for him, but this boy made it possible. Kai placed a hand on the other's shoulder, patting it: "It's okay. At least I actually get to _see_. I wish I could do something amazing for you, to show you my thanks."

Rei looked at Kai, who felt his soul being untarnished. Kai noticed that even though it seemed like the other boy was peering into his soul, Kai did not recoil. Rei was someone he could completely trust and would be very happy to call him friend. The Russian cleared his throat, removing his hand from Rei's shoulder, speaking: "I don't care if this is a dream or whoever you are but… I trust you. If this is a one-time thing… can I… can you…"

The other boy smiled brightly and placed his hand on Kai's shoulder. "Can we be friends? If you say we're friends, consider that payment for your sight."

Kai smirked and grabbed Rei's hand off his shoulder. He clasped onto it and shook it, affirming the statement. "We have a deal."

Rei laughed and shook his new friend's hand. Still clasping onto Kai's hand, Rei paused the shaking and smiled deviously. "Since you're worried about this being a one-time thing, I can definitely try to meet you in your dreams in the next cycle."

Letting go of Rei's hand, the Russian folded his arms across his chest. "How could you find me again? You said you messed up the words the first time."

"I did, but that's okay! Now that I've seen you and met you, I can easily find you through my Dream portal. Plus, you're not all that hard to find, considering you're the first person that I've ever met in another dimension-" Rei paused as Kai held up his hands, slowing his explanation.

"Whoa, slow down. What's a dream portal? And what did you mean by 'another dimension'?"

Rei blushed at the sudden questions and massaged the back of his neck. "Um, I guess there is _a lot_ to explain, but if I tell you everything, you have to promise not to tell anyone in _your_ world about me or your sight."

Kai frowned and asked, "could I tell my dog Dranzer?"

"Can your dog talk?"

"In my world, dogs don't talk; only bark."

Rei laughed and rested his forearm on Kai's shoulder. "Most dogs don't talk in my world too! But I don't see why not. If you believe your dog is a secret keeper, then I trust Dranzer too."

Kai chuckled and stared into Rei's eyes. The other boy removed his arm and smiled gently at his new friend. "I don't know why, Kai, but… every time I look at you, I feel like I can trust you with _anything_. I know it sounds weird coming from another boy, but… I figured if you're my friend, I might as well show you that I'm honest."

"And I agree," Kai became slightly embarrassed, avoiding Rei's eyes. "I-I mean, being honest. And knowing you can trust me…"

Rei rolled his eyes at his new friend and clapped him on the back. "Don't be embarrassed; it's just us in this surrounding. I swear I won't tell anybody in my world about you or any secrets you have."

"I know…because I can trust you with anything too," mumbled Kai, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Thanks, Kai. How's this: next cycle, or next time you sleep at night, I'll explain what I do as best as I can."

The Russian boy looked into Rei's eyes and nodded, "Okay."

Rei turned around and bowed his head, mumbling a few words in a foreign language that Kai has never heard. He watched his friend's hands make a huge arch above Rei's head, curious as to what he was doing. Once Rei was finished, the boy turned back to Kai and smiled brightly once more.

"Maybe next time, I can try to find a way for you to discover colors."

Kai scowled at the offer and shook his head. "You're doing too much for me."

"Okay then, do something for me," Rei motioned his hand to the space around them, lightly laughing, "when you dream, think of somewhere you want to be. Since you can't see in your world, imagine anywhere you want to see. You can describe it to me and your surroundings will shift to your description."

Kai smiled and nodded. "Deal. What are you doing?"

The other boy sighed, his shoulders dropping in slight depression. "I have to wake up soon, so I'm traveling back through my Dream portal, which I'll explain to you tomorrow. Promise to meet me again?"

"I promise. I look forward to seeing you again," Kai chuckled at his words and shook his head. "I thought I never get to say those words to anyone."

Rei laughed. "I look forward to seeing you too. Pleasant waking, Kai." With that, Kai's new friend disappeared through what he called a "Dream portal". The only boy in the dream smiled and glanced back at the reflection, which was amazingly still there. Kai memorized every scar on his hands and arms, every lock that fell into place on his head.

Kai thought about removing the glasses, just to see the color of his hair… and maybe eyes. As he placed his hands on the spectacles, his eyes blinked…

/.../end/.../

Darkness.

Kai inhaled sharply at the very familiar feeling of not being able to move his eyes lids. He growled at believing in some impossible dream of waking up with his sight. He laid in his bed, reminding himself that it was only a dream… a very ridiculous dream. His hand went up to massage the bridge of his nose, lifting the glasses, and-

Glasses? Kai yanked them off and felt their detail. They were the same pair that Rei had gave to him! 'So the dream _was_ real,' thought Kai, still fingering the lens and the thick frames. "But how did these become _real_?'-

He was startled when Kai heard a knock on his bedroom door. "Kai, son? Are you awake?"

His father. Remembering Rei's promise, Kai ducked the pair of the glasses under his bed and answered his father. "Yes sir, I'm awake."

"Good! There's breakfast on the table and if you need help-"

"I'll be sure to call, sir, thank you." Kai heard his father take his leave and held a whistle for two seconds. He felt two front paws on his bed side, signaling to Kai that Dranzer was up and ready. Kai smiled towards Dranzer, scratching behind the dog's ears. "Wait until you hear about my dream," Kai's hand crawled under his pillow and retrieved the goggles. He held them under the dog's nose, hearing a whine and an excited panting. "I know it's weird, but I can't wait to go back to sleep."

* * *

Authoress: Well! I have to say not bad for a prologue, but I will let you, the readers, be the judge of that. I will do my best to update _Paranormal_ in the next week or so, but I think I'm hooked onto updating this one. Anyway, see you next time!


	2. Disappearance

AA-Chan: I just realized that if I'm going to have fun with this fic, I have to get rid of "authoress" title. AA-Chan will do ~grins~ So! Thank you for being interested in this fic! I promise you won't be disappointed! And to be honest with you, I hit a bump in _Paranormal _but I do promise to have another chapter up soon!

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapter.

AA-Chan: Well! Now that we got that out the way… Next chapter, ROLL!

**Chapter One: Disappearance**

_**Ten years ago…**__ continued_

Kai sat at the dining room table, laying down his tape recorder with his tutor's assignment for him on Monday. He sighed and whistled for his faithful husky, sliding his hand off the table to wait for soft fur at his touch. He wiggled his fingers as soon as Dranzer was by his side, giving his dog an affection scratch behind the ears. Knowing he was the only one in the house for the next hour, Kai removed the goggles from his pocket and absentmindedly caress the lens. Kai may had already developed a paranoia about leaving the goggles out of his reach, so he placed them in his cargo pants' pocket wherever he goes.

He planned to confront Rei about the goggles appearing in his world. He was still amazed at their physical presence in his hands, let alone his world. He paused the tape recorder to allow his mind to be distracted. 'How did Rei let them come into my world? Is he really that strong even if he's training for a seer? What does a Seer do? Can Rei see the future and other dreams?' More questions popped into his head. Kai sighs deeply before clearing his mind to continue his assignment. He place the eye-wear back in his pocket and left his hand there. Even while his tutor gave Kai several lessons, the boy kept his hand in his pocket, in fear of losing the only connection Kai had with his "dream" friend Rei.

Rei, the boy who changed Kai's darkness into, at first, a blinding light and then into an impossible miracle. Kai did not think that if he was to regain his vision, he would have something or someone in mind to see for the first time; like if someone had temporary blindness, that person would say "when my eyesight is restored, I want to watch TV for the first time again". That one thing or one person to see for the first time would be a treasure because it _was_ first impression. Now he was glad that Rei was, literally, an amazing sight for sore eyes.

The Russian smiled at the thought of when Rei bestowed the goggles upon Kai. But slowly his smile faded into confused frustration. Once again, Kai could not understand how Rei brought the goggles into Kai's world, but could not allow color to come into his dreams. From what Rei told him about "altering dream surroundings", Kai assumed that Rei was bound to rules or he had restricted powers because Rei told Kai that he was a "Seer-in-training".

Speaking of which, what was the term that Rei kept mentioning… dreamation? What was that actually? A form of study in Rei's world? A brand of magic, perhaps? Rei mentioned about having dragons and Fae (was that another term for fairies?) in his world; were they common like planes and cars to Kai? He had so many questions about Rei's world that they flooded his thoughts, wanting to burst out loud to someone with answers. However, the only person with answers was Rei. Even with his disability, Kai could vividly describe the other boy… his friend.

"Dranzer, I hope you aren't getting jealous when I mention Rei," Kai chuckled at the wet, rough tongue on his hand. "No offense, but you don't talk to me as much." The dog whined and gave a comforting lick to his master's hand. Kai, grabbing the goggles, pushed his chair back with his legs and walked in the direction of the living room, lazily using Dranzer as a guide. Usually Kai can wander through his home without any assistance, but his mind was so occupied with Rei and Kai's numerous questions that Kai did not was to take any chances on breaking something.

When Kai turned to feel the back of legs touching the couch's arm, he allowed himself to fall onto the cushions. He laid the goggles on his chest, still feeling the thick rims and the lens. "I wonder if he'll actually keep his word…" murmured Kai, using his right hand to pet his dog. "Which reminds me that I need to think of a place that I can describe to Rei," Kai paused his right hand and patted Dranzer. "What sounds like a good place to dream of?"

The red-furred husky barked softly, whining. The dog nuzzled against Kai's side, startling its master into sitting up. Kai frowned towards his furry companion, but managed to set his feet on the floor. Dranzer placed his head under Kai's fingers, signaling for his master to follow. He led Kai to the front door, scratching at the door and whining.

The Russian boy frowned, curious to know why his dog wants to go outside-

Kai smirked and patted the dog on the head, scratching behind Dranzer's left ear. The dog panted contently, gazing up at Kai's feeling around for the leash that hung on the key rack. Kai murmured: "I'm sorry for doubting your communication skills. Good dog," Leaning down to feel for Dranzer's collar, Kai clipped the leash onto the tags and felt for the door knob that would lead the pair outside to Kai's ideal dream.

…

Kai insisted on not feeling well, but not so much to make his mother panic; his father suggested that Kai go to bed early and hope for sleep to rid Kai's "minor sickness". The boy bade his parents good night and let Dranzer lead him to his bedroom (well, their bedroom, since Dranzer "insists" on wanting to be near Kai around the clock). While Kai was doing his nightly routine before going to bed, he thought of his afternoon in the park. It did not seem like an hour and a half had past, but one of the Pajari's attendants found Kai to bring him back home out of sheer panic. Until the attendant found him and Dranzer, Kai felt the soft blades of grass, the tiny specks of grains that made up the sand, the roughness of tree's bark. He put that to memory and hoped for his memory to carry over into his dream. Standing over the sink, he felt for the goggles in his pocket and smiled, remembering to wear them before going to bed.

/…/…/…/

Kai looked around at his white surroundings, praying he'll impress Rei with his choice of where he wanted to be. He closed his eyes, very familiar with the darkness, and thought of all the different textures that he felt during his waking hours with Dranzer. He felt his mind shifting, but focused on wanting to amaze his new friend. He recognized the scent of a nice afternoon in the afternoon with a hint of fresh cut grass. He smirked and before he opened his eyes, Kai heard a voice that cause him to smile more:

"Wow, this is really nice," replied Rei, looking around. He gave a toothy grin to Kai, walking towards Kai's left. The Russian boy smiled at Rei, but frowned at the gray grass and trees behind him. The other boy tilted his head in curiosity and glanced behind him. "Oh! Don't worry about that! I've actually got great news!" Rei walked over to stand in front of Kai, half an arm's length.

"I know your eyes hurt when you look without the spectacles, but a friend of mine told me a spell to make the spectacles' lens appear to be clear to you!"

Kai smiled at the news and raised an eyebrow at his friend, distracted by his clothes. "That's good news, but why are your clothes in different shades?"

The other boy blushed and burrowed his eyebrows, answering: "My clothes are going to help you later, so don't laugh. Now close your eyes; I don't want to damage your eyesight in your dreams."

The Russian boy nodded and did as instructed. He heard Rei inhale and began to speak, as familiar palms shadowed over his eyelids: "May eyes see clearly, peering out/Though darkness protects them all about… okay, now before you open your eyes, promise me you won't laugh at my clothes."

"I promise," Kai felt the hands leave and slowly opened his eyes, dropping his head. He inhaled sharply and let his law drop slightly, looking at feet darker-skinned than his own. Using peripheral vision and not focusing on Rei's face, Kai noticed that Rei wore the same style of clothing the last time they say each other, however there were seven bright "shades"…

No… Colors. Those must be colors.

Kai moved his vision to go upward towards Rei's eyes, or tried to because Rei was looking down and away from Kai. The Russian boy took a step back, observing his friend further more into detail. With these improved tinted lens' inability to mask colors from Kai's vision, there was no way he would ever forget what Rei looked like. Continuing, Rei's tunic started in one color and faded into another, which faded into another, and so on, all the way down to the hem of his pants. Kai was still amazed at his friend's skin tone, which was much tanner than what Kai had thought; Rei's hair was black, but not like the darkness he was used to-

Rei looked up and Kai had to hold himself steady. Those eyes… they were a very beautiful color, so shimmering and… full of worry?

"What's wrong, Rei?"

The Seer-in-training looked down again, shuffling his barefoot. "I know you want to laugh, but you promised-"

Kai frowned and walked to Rei, closing the distance. Rei watched him as Kai hesitantly raise his hand to grab Rei's tunic at the hem. The Russian stared at one color and traveled all the way to Rei's face. Kai released the tunic and smiled truly. "Why would I laugh at the most amazing gift _anyone_ has ever given me? And what makes it even more amazing is that _you_ let me see this. Thank you, Rei."

The other boy sniffled and suddenly wrapped his arms around Kai's neck, hugging him tightly. "I'm glad that you don't think I'm funny-looking," Kai was not sure if he should hug back, but before the Russian boy had a chance to raise his arms, Rei released him at an arm's distance and grinned. "Well, let's get started on your first lesson of colors!"

Kai nodded and glanced down: the grass was still gray. Gazing down at his feet, he noticed that his pants and shirts were gray, but different shades. He snapped his eyes at Rei, who held his hands out defensively. "Before you get upset, you have to understand the basic colors and then I can teach you to shift your dream surroundings into color, including yourself. Because I'm not your creation-just a visitor-I'm not really bound to your rules; just simply abide by them. Anyway, that's another time. Now for the basics," Rei smiled and looked down to his left shoulder, using his right hand to point at the first color.

"This color is red," Rei moved to his finger down to a different color, "Orange… Yellow… Green… Blue, like your hair… and purple. Now this is gonna be the tricky or hard part… or both…" Rei sighed and pinched his chin, thinking about his next approach. Kai, on the other hand, was so mesmerized with that color in Rei's eyes and the… red that decorated both shoulders. The Russian did not realize that he moved closer to Rei until the other boy placed a hand on Kai's shoulder to stop him. "Are you alright, Kai?"

"What color are your eyes?" blurted Kai, ignoring the heated rush to his cheeks. He stared hard at his friend, making Rei look down at their feet.

"Um… maybe a gold-ish color, well if we're going against this color scheme, it would be yellow, though technically they would be called gold."

"Gold… They're pretty…"

Kai bit his bottom lip and looked away, as Rei blushed a very light reddish color in his cheeks and scuffed his heels in the soft grass. The Russian cleared his throat and found the hem of his shirt in need of attendance. "I meant the color is… pretty… the eye color themselves are beautiful-no…" Kai growled in frustration, running his hand through his locks. His hand felt the goggle's earpiece, reminding Kai of a pressing question.

"Anyway, Rei… How did you get these glasses into my world?"

That caught the other boy's attention; Rei widened his eyes in shock as he tried to stare at Kai's covered eyes through the mentioned subject. "… what do you mean? The spectacles appeared in your… world?"

"I woke up this morning and I had them on," Kai made a movement to remove the goggles, but as soon as the frames lifted off his cheek, a bright light with red hue prevented him from taking them off any further. Kai gritted his teeth at the sudden pain in his eyes, but refuse to make any noise in fear of alarming Rei. Instead, the Russian inhaled sharply and made it look like he was clearing the lens off, using his bangs to hide his closed eyes. He adjusted his head to continue his explanation. "Anyway, I know I couldn't see in my world with them on, but I wanted to know how they _appeared _in my world."

The Seer-in-training tucked his bottom lip under his top row of teeth before letting out a sigh. He slowly sat down on the grass, concentrating on trying to find an explanation. Kai sat next to his friend with bended knees and his arms resting on them. He leaned forward to watch Rei, pushing away the apprehension should Rei not come up with anything; Rei _was_ "in-training" after all.

Turning to Kai, Rei answered: "I honestly don't know, Kai. I… I really thought it was impossible for anything to come from the dream realm into _any_ world. I'm really sorry I don't have an answer, but maybe I can ask an Elder if there ever was a way for it to be done."

Kai shook his head and smiled. "It's not a big deal; I was just curious to see how you did it. Anyway, you said you don't want anybody to find out about us, so no sense in asking something suspicious."

The other boy looked down and fingered with a blade of grass, speaking softly: "I'm sorry for binding you to this. If you want me to leave so you can dream of whatever, you won't hurt me-"

"No!" Kai latched his hand onto Rei's upper arm, once again not in a harming manner. "Please, don't leave. You've given me so much and… you really are my friend, well my only _human_ friend," Kai smirked when Rei laughed lightly at the comment, but continued: "I wanna hang out with you as much as possible."

Rei smiled brightly and nodded. "Okay. But promise me if you want to dream by yourself, you'll let me know?"

"I promise."

"Great. Now, onto the real deal of this cycle," Rei laid on his back, motioning for Kai to mimic him. Kai placed his hands under his head, cushioning his mind, and looked up to the whiteness above them. Around him, he was still not used to gray being an option for grass (he always heard the expression "the grass was _greener_ on the other side"), but he trusted Rei during this situation and did not mind spending time with his friend.

"Now, I'm gonna try and help you shape your surroundings by adding color. Since the 'sky' above us is so vast, it'll be easier for you to experiment. What do the people in your world say what color the sky is?"

"Blue. A light blue."

"Okay. Close your eyes," Rei turned his head slightly to see Kai's eyelids closing. He did not change the lens' tint so he could analyze Kai's eye color because lightening the tint would hurt Kai. Something in his gut told him not to concern himself with Kai's eyes right now, but maybe later when Kai's comfortable with his dream surroundings. Rei smiled to himself on that conclusion and continued to instruct Kai. "I know this may sound funny, but imagine your mind painting the sky with blue."

"Like using a paintbrush?"

"Yes, but without the paintbrush."

Kai burrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "How am I suppose to do that?"

"That's why I said it may sound funny. Since you got a good look at the colors on my clothes, you should be able to see any specific color. In this case, to make the sky blue, you gotta see blue in your mind and make it take the shape of the sky. Since the sky is big, you only have to focus on what's above you, not below you-"

Kai squished his eyes tighter, trying to picture blue in the white sky he saw before closing his eyes. The Russian was startled when he felt a hand on his forehead. "Relax your eyes," said Rei softly. "You're gonna hurt your eyes if you do that."

The other followed the advice and relaxed. In his mind, he wanted the blue from Rei's tunic to be spread across the sky, but not as bright. Lighter, if anything, to fit the descriptions he heard in his world. Kai felt something shifting in his mind, causing him to have slight goose bumps along his arms at the thought of seeing blue sky-

"That's it! You did it Kai!"

Kai opened his eyes and gaped at what his imagination had done. The sky above them… was blue. Light blue…

"Sky blue… just like they said," whispered Kai. He knew there were suppose to be clouds, but right now, he did not care. He was so amazed at the scene above him that he almost forgot to thank Rei. With that thought, he turned his head and then his attention to golden orbs shining in glee. Kai smiled wide and said, "thanks."

"I'm very impressed! What did you do get the sky a lighter shade?"

"Just like you said, 'relax,' and after that, I somehow thought of the blue fading like turning down the heat in a fire. Did I do it right?"

"Actually, I'm impressed on how you got blue to fade without me telling you. That's really good, Kai! You're a fast learner!" Rei laughed as Kai looked downcast instead of at him. "Now let's see if you can add some clouds and make the grass green."

…

What may seem like an enjoyable forever were only a few hours that Rei helped Kai shape his dream surroundings and their colors. After adding colors to trees, sand, and anything else related to the general park area, the Seer-in-training informed Kai of different types of clouds based on what Kai felt and from what he was told in his world. Then, Kai molded the clouds with his mind into different shapes. He heard about several kids guessing the shape of random clouds, so he allowed Rei to guess. Rei, in turn, summoned his own clouds so Kai would not have the advantage of cloud guessing. They both laughed, enjoying the nice "day" Kai dreamed of.

"I have no idea what that is," laughed Kai. "A bucket?"

Rei echoed Kai's laughter and pointed to one of the many smaller clouds. "That is obviously a war drum." The raven-haired boy's laughter grew softer until Kai noticed that his friend stopped laughing. He calmed himself and gave Rei a few moments to his thoughts. "What's wrong, Rei?"

"…"

Kai turned his attention to his friend, studying Rei's saddened features. "You can tell me what's wrong. If not, I can wait for you."

The other boy nodded and sat up, bringing his knees to his chest. "I'm sorry Kai, but I don't wanna talk about what's going on in my world right now. They're…"

"Complicated," finished Kai, sitting up as well. He braced his arms slightly behind him and leaned backwards. He still continued to look at the "war drum," and assumed that that has something to do with Rei's world. "We won't talk about 'them'. We can talk about you. You did tell me that you'll explain what a dreamation is."

Kai smiled in understanding as Rei looked at him with troubled eyes. The golden-eyed youth nodded and took a deep breath to distract his thoughts of his home world. When he exhaled, Rei relaxed his body and put on a smile to begin explaining, "a Dreamation is a casting spell of crossing of realms or worlds, specifically through dreams done only by a trained Seer."

"Sounds like a book's definition."

Rei chuckled. "It is. Had to memorize it. Anyway, think of it as traveling across different dimensions and worlds, but they're all each and every different person's dream."

"Got it. When you say Seer, do you mean someone that can predict the future?"

"That's the basic powers of a Seer. Several kinds exist, but a Dreamation Seer is most powerful… or from what I was told. Anyway, seeing into a generalized future, predicting nature's way, reading people's feelings, and identifying certain types of powers are the kinds of Seers in my world. Example, my older sister Mao has the gift of reading people's feelings-"

"You have a sister?"

Rei laughed, slightly blushing. "Yeah, and she's a pain, but I love her," he paused for a moment to reflect a memory before Rei snapped back into the present. "We can talk about her and my friends after you get the idea of my world, unlike me understanding what a 'car' is."

"I tried hard to explain what it is, but never mind. Continue please. How is a Dreamation Seer most powerful?"

"Unlike the others, we can change or adjust people and who they are just by simply telling them what to do."

Kai frowned. "That doesn't sound ethical. You can't control people."

Rei held his hands up in a defensive manner. "I know! Before we can even train, we are sworn to _never, ever_ control people, but only to observe or guide dreamers. Anyway, depending on the person and species, a mind is only withholding its true potential from the person and before you ask, everyone's mind's capability is not at maximum level. Only ten percent is being used; in a person's dream, the other ninety percent is used."

"How is that possible?" asked Kai, forgetting about Rei's potential ability to control people. Even if it was possible for Rei to control people, Kai believed that Rei would never do that.

"Imagination is a powerful thing and can give people incredible powers. For example, you would have never thought on seeing in your dreams, but _you_ altered that. You believed in it and in yourself to make it happen. Dreamation Seers are only there for others to help encourage people into reaching higher expectations for the greater good of others," Rei gave a toothy grin. "I guess I am a good student if I can repeat my lessons."

"Alright, let me help you with repetition. Define what a Dream portal is."

The other boy nodded and answered, "an entryway created by a Dreamation Seer to enter or leave a person's dream back into their mind. It's more of a mental doorway to other dreams."

"Do you have to be asleep to go through one?"

"Oh no, you don't have to. A Seer can go into a deep meditation and go into a Dream portal. Being asleep just means more time to stay longer within the dream realm versus a few hours or more during a meditation."

"So you can go into any person's dream in my world?" asked Kai.

Rei bit his lip in thought. "That's the part _I _don't even understand. I should be only able to travel between people in my world. I didn't even know your world existed. I heard rumors, but never thought them to be true…" Rei looked at Kai and grinned. "Thank the Deity I somehow did it or I wouldn't have met you!"

"Well, from what you've been telling me, you're doing well in training to be a Seer," complimented Kai.

"You, Max and Kenny are doing a good job helping me!"

Kai tilted his head slightly in confusion, ignoring that tiny pain in his heart. Was that jealousy? "Who are they?"

"My friends in my world. Max is a half-elf and Kenny is an Alchemist and another friend Takao is training to be a Knight," Rei looked at his friend's slightly shocked face and laughed lightly. "You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you? It's okay, I can show them to you if you like and explain their species and title."

"They're not human?"

"Takao and Kenny are, but Max is half. The other elves say that he's too emotional to be an elf and humans say he looks too different to be human. To us, Max is our best friend and nothing else."

Kai admired Rei's lack of prejudice towards his friends. From how Rei described his friend Max, if Kai ever had a chance to meet him, he would definitely praise Max on how well he chose his friends. "I can see your world? Like visit them?"

Rei shook his head in disappointment. "I wish you could, but I have no idea how to bring people _or_ things _outside_ of dreams. Like I said, I don't know if it's even possible…" A few disheartening seconds passed and Rei continued to smile, saying "but I can show you them in a Well-mirror. You remember how you saw yourself for the first time? I used the surface of a Well-mirror to show you your reflection and now I can use it for another purpose."

Rei got onto his feet and offered his hands to help Kai stand. Before he could bow his head, the Seer-in-training grumbled and sighed heavily. "I guess I'll have to show you in our next cycle. This was my one day to dream-out longer than necessary."

"Dream-out?"

"For you, it would be the same as sleeping in," Rei smiled and hugged Kai. "At least it was all worth seeing you making your dream surroundings. I can't wait to show you my friends next time! Hopefully they won't be doing something stupid in their dream…"

"If you can peer into their dream, won't they see you or notice you in them?"

Golden eyes widen at the sudden realization and held Kai at arms length. "By the Deity, you're right! I can show them to you when they're sleeping, but that's boring to watch someone sleep."

"What about if we met in a nap? Is the time in your world similar to my day and night?"

Rei released his friend and thought about his answer. Kai, on the other hand, shrugged at the simple conclusion, "I mean, it has to be because we're both asleep at the same time."

"Kai! You're a genius!"

The paler youth smirked and crossed his arms with arrogance. "Of course I am. What time did you want to take a nap?"

"Um… three o'clock?"

"I don't know about that. I have to meet with my tutor around that time. What about five?"

"I have to help around my village…"

Both boys looked at their feet, thinking of a reasonable nap time. Kai glanced at Rei, smiling a little at how Rei looked when he was focused. Did Rei always look like that when he was concentrating? "Relax your eyes; you'll hurt them if you do."

Rei snapped his eyes to Kai's lens and laughed. "Yes sir! We'll just meet in the next cycle and plan from there. I really hope you get to see my friends next time."

"If not, we can see them in the cycle after that," Kai still felt the smallest pang of jealousy in his heart, but it doesn't matter because they make Rei happy. The Russian smiled and nodded to his friend, "Pleasant waking, Rei."

The other giggled, "pleasant waking, Kai."

/…/end/…/

* * *

Days turned into weeks, followed by months. Each night for Kai was as pleasant as the one before. Rei taught him more of the other world, from the darkest burgundy night sky to the light purplish ("lavender," Rei reminded) sand. He eventually showed Kai other terrains in his world, but not revealing populated towns or villages that might hint to him about Rei's troubles. Even though the raven-haired youth was stubborn to avoid the upsetting situation in his world, Kai was still a patient friend and waited each passing day for Rei to tell him about his problems or concerns.

Kai remembered Rei fulfilling his promise of using a Well-mirror to show him his friends. One of them was Max, the half-elf human who has an affinity for Earth. The blond was always laughing and willing to try new things with his powers and manages to make things fun. Kai watched Max shape bowls in the ground for animals to collect rain water; he was considerate of others. The next friend was Kenny the Alchemist who can be compared to Kai's world-version of a sorcerer and scientist. Kenny also liked experimenting with new spells and making his current alchemy skills stronger. He made plenty of mistakes, but was determined to see the glass half-full when errors come his way, like discovering certain liquids are used for creating smoke bombs. Rei's last friend Takao was an extremity of emotions. Although Rei mentioned Takao training to be a Knight, or a warrior-based soldier for a militia, Kai thought of Takao being lazy and very difficult to deal with. One minute Takao was laughing so hard and the next he was red in the face from yelling at another trainee. Rei was not embarrassed to call Takao friend, even if Kai would have.

Rei listened about Kai's world as well, learning about cars, cell phones, and things that carry people in the sky ("airplanes," reminded Kai). Kai described his parents to him and explained that he was adopted by them. He also told the Seer-in-training about what little memory he has of his biological mother. Rei wanted to show Kai sympathy, but Kai would not have that. Kai was interested in seeing Rei's family, but it was a subject that was bordering to the troubles Rei avoid telling Kai.

Nevertheless, meeting Rei was the best thing that ever happened to Kai. He knew that there would be no way for him to return to his previous dreams of emptiness. Because of Rei, Kai did not ever want to be lonely again. He learned to adapt to people's feelings towards him instead of snubbing others away and in turn, met acquaintances that might be called friends. They were not as amazing as Rei, but then again, no one could compare to what Kai thought of Rei. Kai's attitude towards others changed for the better with the passing weeks.

His parents, on the other hand, were baffled at Kai's changing demeanor. They knew that their son was not the most sociable person in the world and that he preferred Dranzer over any human being, but Kai seemed to respect each person he comes into contact with. His mother and his father were concerned at first, but Mrs. Stasia Pajari became glad that her son was opening up to others. Sasha Pajari was suspicious of someone else influencing Kai, but dismissed the idea of Kai sneaking away at night to meet a girl. He watched his son sleep a couple of nights and felt content every time he saw Kai smiling in his dreams. Soon after, both parents adjusted to Kai's new behavior and spend a little more time to encourage this new change.

In recent nights, Rei taught his friend on creating images based on imagination alone without any influence from either world. It was difficult at first, but soon, Kai devised scenarios, like a labyrinth for both of them to play. Kai probably won't admit this to Rei, but he loved the park background because it was the first special place that Rei helped him build. New animals and creatures were created so Kai could have mental pictures of them when people have conversations around him. He even got to ride a tamed dragon after Rei described it. With Rei, nothing could ever go wrong…

Until Rei's situation worsened two years later.

* * *

AA-Chan: I know! I know… I'm EXTREMELY late with posting PB and this fic. This extended chapter hopefully makes up for my absence! PB will up BEFORE the end of this year!

_**Eight Years Ago…**_

/…/…/…/

Ten-years-old and still growing, Kai sat on lavender sand banks from Rei's world, skipping smooth tangerine pebbles across a cerulean lake. A light breeze fluttered through his open button-up shirt, treating it like a small maroon cape. He wore tan cargo jeans, instead of his usual shorts, wanting a cool afternoon over a warm one. Kai smiled at the pleasant afternoon he was dreaming of, hoping that he won't be interrupted from his sleep. He loved being 'outside' when he dreams, but he much rather enjoy the terrain with Rei.

Recently, Rei had become a full Dreamation Seer after receiving a blessing from the Elder Seers of his village and also became the youngest Seer alive. No matter how busy Rei was, he always made sure to visit Kai in his dreams. And although Kai did not gain such a prestigious title like his friend, the Russian youth expanded his studies at home and tried to become familiar with Rei's world. He would research mythology or paranormal legends as a hobby and confirm their truths to Rei's answers. Both boys were on their way into becoming remarkable young men.

The Russian glanced at the hourglass and noticed that only about seventy-five percent of sleep remain. A year ago, Kai learned about a person's internal sleeping clock, which helps Rei monitor the time spent in a dreamer, and managed to design a tangible one to watch for his time. Rei was very impressed of Kai's ingenuity and borrowed the idea from him, but only made one pocket-sized. Lately, the Seer has been late a couple of cycles recently, and Kai can understand that because his friend has responsibilities brought from his rank. However, Rei was never this late; he had always shown up around the eighty-five percent mark…

Kai looked around his surroundings, standing up to get a better view of the distance. His eyes caught a peripheral glimpse of a Dream portal shimmering into space and soon after Rei came through. The boy frowned, as he watched his friend check behind himself, apparent fear on his features. Rei hurried in closing the portal and ran over to Kai, breathing heavily yet avoiding to look into Kai's lens. No matter how much time has passed, Kai never tried to remove the goggles so they can see each other eye to eye; they both concluded that Kai's eyes were extremely sensitive, even in the dream realm.

"Rei! What's wrong?" Kai scanned over the Seer to check for any injuries, noticing a wrapped bandage on his left arm. "What happened to you?"

"I was running away… from some soldiers… and managed to get scraped along the way. Right now, my body's resting… in a hiding spot from them. Kai…" Rei raised his head, trying to keep from crying. Kai noticed that Rei's eyes show sign of crying previously, but he didn't judge his friend for showing tears. He was going to suggest his friend rest here but something in Rei's eyes shifted from panic to fear. "Re-remember a long time ago when I told you… that something bad is going on in my world?"

"Yes, but you don't have to tell me if you don't want to-"

"I do… want to tell you," Rei sunk to his knees, followed by the Russian boy. They both sat on the sand, ignoring the nice breeze and the calm lake. The Seer inhaled deeply and stared at Kai, "A war is being fought right now and I don't know if I'll make it."

Kai became paler, almost losing his balance while sitting. The wind's cool breeze dropped a few degrees. They're both ten-years-old and Rei is fighting in a war? "Is it because you're a Seer that you have to fight?"

Rei nodded and looked out towards the calm lake. Kai stared at the Seer with wide eyes, trying to cease his heart's loud thumping. After seeing each other for a little over two years, Kai could not cope with losing Rei. He would just refuse to believe in his dreams and would shut out the world because his best friend meant more than the world. Consequently, Kai has been curious and patient enough to want to know about Rei's situation in his world, but he did not think that it would weigh so heavily in his heart.

"This all began a little after I was born," began Rei, "there was talk about a war among the countries. It only lasted a few months, but it was the beginning of worse to come. Anyway, do you remember me showing you the land of Sjever [1]?"

"Yes, the place that reminded me of Russia during mild winters," answered Kai. "You said that was a bad place."

"It still is a bad place. Well, after the few months of war, the country of Sjever was the victor. From what I was told, they cheated into victory by using forbidden magic. Eventually, the Sjeverian king claimed the rest of the countries as his prizes and declared himself ruler… Imperator [2] over all of them. To force everyone in every country to obey him, he had to gain control of their minds. For that to happen… he needed a Dreamation Seer, so he… captured my father... about six months ago." Kai placed a hand on Rei's shoulder, offering support. He tried not to squeeze his friend's shoulder too hard because of the intense anger of the situation. Rei continued:

"I thought Father was banding against the Imperator because he was always away protecting others. But I found out today that he was… imprisoned in the Sjeverian lands. My father refused to do anything for that jerk… he even offered to have the Imperator kill him. But he… he…" Tears started forming in Rei's eyes. He palmed his eyes, wiping any moisture away before Kai could say anything. "That bastard threatened the lives of my village in trade for my father's Dreamation ability!"

"I'm really sorry about your father's imprisonment," Kai offered a small moment of silence for Rei's parent. He was amazed at his friend's brevity; for six months, Rei did not have a father and yet, still he met with him and did not say a word. Kai should be angry or very disappointed in Rei for bottling his emotions, but at least he's telling him now. Kai asked: "I thought you can't control people because of your oath?"

"The Imperator managed to find a loophole in the Seer's oath and force my father to strengthened any person showing loyalty in Sjever by unlocking the mind's remaining ninety percent and placing some sort of tracking-barrier thing in everyone else."

Kai knitted his eyebrows together in disgust. "So the Imperator is making his people stronger than during the war and keeping track of his prize?" Rei nodded in confirmation. Though Kai is outraged about what Rei is stuck in, he admired the strategy of Sjever, but did not like the idea of free will being force to have limitations. "Using a super army to keep track of a huge empire… how did your father manage to do all of this?"

"He somehow cast a Dreamation on almost everyone and did something in their dreams to prevent them from thinking of overpowering the Imperator. To do all that… somehow, Father used his life force to make that bastard's dream become a reality."

'Does that mean that Rei's father is dead or barely alive?' thought Kai. "How did you find out about all of this?" Kai suddenly noticed that the Seer became glassy-eyed, not really paying attention to his surroundings. 'He's starting to numb himself from all this pain.'

"He managed to use the rest of his life force to relay a message to Lee by binding his spirit to Lee's Dream portal before it can depart forever. He died trying to save us…" Rei brought his knees to his chest and bowed his head, covering his eyes. "And now, we have to fight to survive because the Imperator wants everyone under his rule. Everyone who has that barrier in their minds blames our village of Seers, and they don't even know the truth!"

The Russian boy frowned deeply, rage growing within his heart. The clouds above started to form into a storm in the distance, building strength from Kai's emotions. Before the storm could move to where they are, Kai soothe his inner anger. He maneuvered his body to sit in front of Rei, trying to make eye contact. "Listen to me, Rei. Fear makes people ignorant of reasoning. They're scared of Sjever and feel like they're being backed into a corner, lashing out at anyone that's weaker than them as a whole." As soon as Rei lifted his head, Kai inhaled sharply at the tears pouring from those beautiful gold eyes.

"I-I'm sorry, Kai, but I don't know what to do… I'm th-the… only Dreamation Seer left… and I'm scared that the Imperator will get me too… He's trying to eliminate everyone that's not loyal to him.. I-I just don't want anyone else to suffer!" Rei lunged at Kai, bawling into his friend's shirt. The other was dumbfounded at the sudden hug, but his arms automatically held Rei. The storm dispersed from the sky and the clouds returned to their original forms.

"It's alright to be scared. We're only ten-years-old, not even old enough to face this kind of fear," he waited for Rei's crying lower in volume before continuing. "You may be the only Seer, but you're not alone, Rei. You have your friends and the people in your village-"

"The Imperator ordered our village to be destroyed and any powerful Seer to be spared only to serve him! Everyone was trying to escape... I got separated from Lee and Mao… and I don't have anywhere else to go…"

Kai tightened his grip and lightly shook Rei for his attention. "Don't think negatively, Rei. It may all be frightening, but there's still some hope. You said that you had some good friends. Max, Kenny and Takao are still alive, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Surely one of them can hide you until a plan is formed. And you have me. I may not be able to help you physically, but I'll do my best to be there for you. I'll go into a coma, just to wait for you to visit me."

Rei widened his eyes, squeezing Kai's arms and digging his nails into the skin. "Don't say things like that! Please, don't do that to yourself for me, Kai."

"I would do anything for you because you're my best friend, Rei."

The Seer was stunned at the honest words. Rei gave a small smile, ignoring the few tears sliding down his cheeks. "Thank you…" Once Rei released Kai from his grip, he wiped his cheeks. Both boys began to stand, one watching the other with intense worry. The Russian boy asked, "are there more people who are trying to rally against the Imperator?"

"There are a lot of people trying to overthrow the Imperator" started Rei, glancing downward in memory. His eyes brightened more at his next phrase: "And there's also people talking about the legend of the Helonix saving us! Maybe I can find the One who could awaken Him and destory the Sjeverian country!"

Even though Kai was confused about this legend, he nodded confidently. "See? All hope is not lost. You just have to keep fighting and stay strong for the remaining people, your friends and yourself. There may be more worse things to come, but in the end, hope will give you enough strength to win."

Rei nodded in agreement, determination shining in his eyes. "I'll just have to help and save as many as I can like my father would!"

"That's the spirit!" Kai glanced at the hourglass with maybe ten more minutes to spare. "I know we have to wake up soon, but I'll be here for you the next cycle. If you ever feel like you aren't accomplishing anything or feel scared, don't be afraid to come to me. I may not be able to fight beside you physically, but I can help you plan."

"Thanks again, Kai. I don't know what I would've done without you."

The Russian boy smirked and shrugged. "Panic because you wouldn't have a good strategist on your side."

Rei chuckled lightly, making Kai's heart beat strongly. "It's been a while since I had a good laugh…"

"You'll laugh more in your future when this bastard does down. I promise," Kai looked at the remaining grains of sand and sighed in annoyance. "Since Sjeverians are use to the cold, use your environment against them. Travel further south and when you find your friends, stay close to them. If you have to go into towns, make yourself inconspicuous."

Rei nodded once with fortitude, ready to leave Kai's dream. He said his usual chant to open the portal and looked through it with slight fear. Kai placed his hands on the Seer's shoulders, showing support. "You are your father's son and you're just as strong as him. Don't let fear conquer you because that's not who you are, Rei. I believe in you-"

Kai steadied himself as his friend launched into his chest, hugging tightly. Rei mumbled something into Kai's chest and before the Russian could say anything else, Rei released him and hurriedly disappeared through the portal…

The only boy left in the dream, with only seconds to spare before waking, looked at the space that once held the Dream portal. "Be safe, Rei… come back to me."

/…/end/…/

He woke up immediately, sitting up and beginning to feel regret. He should have said or done more. Kai could have made Rei stay longer or come up with a plan. He even had an urge to shove both of them into the portal, but the Seer warned him long ago of the serious consequences that could damage his physical body or worse… but Kai didn't care because he would have been with Rei, standing beside him-

Kai felt tears building in the back of his throat, wanting release. He would not cry for his friend because that would feel like he had given up on Rei. Rei was a strong person, so Kai must be stronger for him. They both knew there was no way for the blind boy to physically come into Rei's world, and that made the Russian grind his teeth in anger.

Dranzer sensed his master's anger and growled. Kai snapped his attention to his furry companion and beckoned him to his open hand. The husky whined and padded to his master, licking the open palm. Dranzer rested his head in Kai's hand, whining softly.

"What will I do if Rei gets hurt? How will I know?" Kai fisted his other hand before petting Dranzer with his palm. "I wish there was a way to help him, Dranzer… why should Rei do this alone?"

The husky whelped in response and nuzzled into the hand. Kai paused in his petting, wondering what would become of Rei while Kai remained in this world. 'Rei… please be careful… I don't want to lose you…'

* * *

AA-Chan: Looks like a good stopping point… but I'm willing to move on to the next part, which was the beginning of the next chapter (and now, ironically, the end of this chapter)!

_**Present Time**_

Many years have passed, including numerous events that impacted billions and billions people of this world. However, for one young man, he did not bother with the world, and world did not bother him. Kai Pajari had grown from being a happy child full of dreams, turning into a cold-hearted and distant young man who ignore the people in this world. The youth now resides in Saint Petersburg to attend its university away from his parents in Moscow. Although he is callous, Kai has grown into attractive young man of age nineteen. Plenty of women and men pursue him, but when they try to interact with him, their minds change. He often keeps to himself and only interacts when necessary for the sake of his parents.

It is close to the end of the spring semester, bringing cool weather instead of the cold Russian winter. It rained the past few days, but today offers no rain cloud; yet Kai remains indoors to study for his final examinations. His loyal companion Dranzer still continues to stay by Kai's side as his eye-seeing dog, seemingly not to have aged. The canine rests at Kai's feet under the desk, leering at any possible intruder that may interrupt his master.

The Russian student pauses from his Braille reading and stretches his arms and back while letting a yawn escape him. His hands come down to rest upon his hair, fingers automatically rubbing the goggles' lens. Kai developed the habit after six months of Rei's last dream visit. Since then, if Kai ever felt that he was beginning to lose his memory of his friend, the glasses would provide him with proof that Rei existed, even in a dream. People of Kai's world laugh at the irony that a blind boy needs any eye-wear, but he would ignore any teasing.

Sighing, Kai brings one of his hands to the side of his chair and opened his hand for Dranzer. The dog licked his master with affection and nuzzled into the hand. "You will watch the room for me while I take a nap, won't you Dranzer?" His furry friend barks within his muzzle and removes himself from underneath the desk. He waits for Kai's hand to be on his scruff before guiding Kai to bed. The Russian knew the distance from his desk to the bed, but he still relies on the husky for help.

Kai sits on top of his blankets, removing the glasses. He pats Dranzer's head, while toying with the eye-wear. He frowns at knowing how much time has passed, trying not to rebuild his self-loathing. He remembers the last time Rei smiled and wonders when will he see his friend showing such happiness. Before he starts to worry excessively, Kai focuses on the last place he had seen Rei those eight years ago. Sometimes he dreams of that lake area, and other times he distracts himself with letting his imagination create the scenario.

The Russian student lays down, placing the goggles on his chest. He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, trying to clear his mind for rest. He reviews what he read for his class, letting the mental lectures put him to sleep…

/…/…/…/

Kai stands in the middle of a field, staring off into the distance through his gifted eye-wear. He recognizes the lake and sandy hill some yards away, and remains thankful that his mind did not produce darkness. After a year of Rei's visit, the Russian was nervous about losing his ability to see in his dreams, but even more tensed about his friend's absence. There had been several times where some tiny part of his mind becomes rational; since Kai is blind, he should only dream of sounds. However, this is not the case this time.

He notices the nearby trees shimmering from bright lime green to a dark emerald with every brush of the wind. The tall grass sways with the direction of the cool breeze, but he temperature does not bother Kai's covered legs. Kai rolls his black sleeves, debating on climbing a tree or sitting in the sand; he settles for the latter.

The Russian dreamer walks towards the glistening cerulean lake. He lightly smiles at the transparent Rei and himself running towards the lake, both ten years younger. Over time, his memories play scenes from his playtime with Rei, but this one was slightly altered. The younger Kai sprints ahead of Rei who laughs and slows down to catch his breath. The young Seer turns around and widen his eyes towards the older Kai. The dreamer frowns at the action, not remembering Rei ever doing this. He slowly turns his head, eyes still focusing on the frightened Rei-

His eyes leaves Rei and stares at the darkened environment. Kai now stands in a field of smoke and ashes with the nearby trees decaying. Everything that he sees is covered in gray and dark shades. "What the hell…" speaks Kai, looking at the nightmarish surroundings. The back of his hand raises to cover his nose, not wanting to inhale any ashes that fluttered.

Kai turns his body and is surprised not to see both young Rei and younger self. All around him is ashes. The lake dry and barren, not even a hint of sunshine seems to touch the once clear blue waters. The sand reminds Kai of powdered bones, dusty with age. What had happened to his surroundings-

Kai yells in surprise at very strong grip on his arm. He turns and glares at the hand before following it from a Dream portal-

"REI!" The Russian uses his forearm to help pull the hand's grip while using his other hand to grab Rei's wrist with a stronger hold. "Rei! Pull yourself through!"

Familiar black locks of hair peer through the portal and a quick glimpse from Rei's golden eyes gives the other the strength needed. Kai plants his feet and pulls Rei through halfway. Through peering eyes, he glowers at the silver chains that bind the Seer's torso and upper arms. Something or someone on the other side yanks on Rei, making Kai almost lose his grip. Rei looks fearfully behind him before turning his frantic eyes to Kai, who shouts: "Rei, hang on! I'll save you!"

Even though Rei could not see Kai's irises, the Seer gazes into his friend's soul, pleading. "Kai! Please… help me!"

The Russian grunts at the strain, trying to get a better grip, but the chains or whatever is holding Rei back refuses to give. Kai tries desperately not to show panic in his slipping grasp. "I'm not going to lose you again!"

"Kai, find the Helonix," struggles Rei, his golden orbs no longer shining in hopes of escape; the Seer is giving in to the pull from the other side-

"Rei! Don't give up! I'm not going to let you go!-"

"I know you'll save me, Kai… I believe in you…" In less than a second, Rei vanishes back into the portal, somehow being suddenly yanked away from Kai's grip. The Russian stares at the empty space that held the Dream portal and cares not about the crumbling area. Kai yells into the darkened sky, cursing everything underneath it, including himself. He rips the glasses off his face and allows pain to spread into his eyes-

/…/end/…/

Kai wakes up in a cold sweat, gasping for air while trying to clear the image of Rei's hopeless eyes that were begging for help. The Russian growls in frustration, hating the opportunity of seeing Rei being crushed by these events. From the bottom of his heart, Kai knew that Rei wasn't dead, but still had worried about his friend's health and conditions surrounding him. Kai fists and squeezes his nails into the blankets, still raging about the nightmare until Dranzer's barks for his attention. Kai releases the comforter and some of his anger then places a hand on top of the husky's head, trying to take deep calming breaths.

"I saw him, Dranzer," begins Kai, facing the ceiling. "I saw Rei…" Kai sits up and searches for the glasses that somewhat catapulted during Kai's short nap. Once he has found them, he swings his legs over the bed's edge, holding the goggles between his knees. Dranzer rests his muzzle on top of Kai's right knee, whining about his master's distress. "After all this time, Rei's been in trouble. And he didn't tell me.." Kai grits his teeth, seething. "How in the hell am I suppose to find a Helonix if I don't know what the fuck it is…" He is close to throwing the goggles across the room in anger. 'Rei, why didn't you come to me sooner after all this time?'

The husky removes his muzzle and pads away from Kai. The Russian ignores his pet's absence until he feels a thin fabric between his fingers. Kai recognizes the fabric as Dranzer's leash, curiosity distracting him from thinking about that nightmare. "What do you want with this, Dranzer?"

He hears his furry companion paw at the door, making a whimpering noise. Kai sighs in frustration. "I needed some air to gather my thoughts anyway. You, on the other hand, just want to go outside…" Kai smirks slightly and shakes his head. "Some friend you are to come up with an idea."

…

Dranzer pants at the excitement of being outside, looking around and sniffing the scents of nature. He hears Kai cursing in his native language, but still continues to help guide his master down the sidewalk that leads towards a dog-friendly park. The husky snorts lightly in the direction of the park and glances over his shoulders to see Kai focusing on something else. Dranzer whines softly and walks in the opposite direction of the park.

He does not feel a tug on his leash, so the canine continues down the chosen path. Dranzer halts, waiting for his master to notice a change in direction. He turns a furry ear to any given command, yet Kai talks to him.

"Dranzer, where do you think I should research a Helonix? Is it an item? No… I remember Rei saying 'Helonix' as a name of a person… Wouldn't they be residing in Rei's world? Am I suppose to dream about them?" Kai curses some more and Dranzer yawns.

The husky continues his light pace before slightly picking up speed. He makes a right turn, going into an alley. Not wanting Kai to notice the change of plans, Dranzer sniffs the pavement, seemingly following a trail.

"Dranzer, where are we going?"

He whines, still moving forward. Kai does not turn back and continues to follow Dranzer. The eye-seeing canine tugs his master along until he halts in front of a large puddle. He sits and waits for Kai's knees to the touch his back. When the Russian did, the husky circles around him and sits again. He whimpers loudly, looking up at his blind master.

Kai turns to face his furry friend, asking "what's the matter, Dranzer?" The dog allows his master's hands on his fur, searching for any injuries. Then he shakes his head, trying to get away from the inspection. "Dranzer, hold."

He ignores the command, still moving. Kai grumbles, "damn it," and crouches in front of Dranzer. Before Kai can inspect again, the husky licks his master face.

"Dranzer! Stop!"

The canine whines…

And barks loud as possible. The sudden noise scares Kai, making him fall backwards and releasing the leash. Dranzer nuzzles briefly into the falling Kai before he watches his master disappearing into the puddle.

The husky barks again at his master's disappearance. If only dogs could smile.

* * *

-Notes-

[1] Croatian for "North"

[2] Latin and phonically Russian for "Emperor"

AA-Chan: Finally a completed chapter! As I mentioned, I hope to have _Paranormal Breakers_ updated before the end of the year. Thank you for reading! Enjoy your day/night wherever and stay tuned for the next chapter!


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